Cokkie Ladies' creations help those in need

Updated 1:54 pm, Sunday, December 2, 2012

Sandra Lee, right, and Cindy Slipko - "The Cookie Ladies," two friends who have been baking together every December 1st, spent their 30th year together at Sandra's house to continue the tradition in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Sandra Lee, right, and Cindy Slipko - "The Cookie Ladies," two friends who have been baking together every December 1st, spent their 30th year together at Sandra's house to continue the tradition in Easton, ... more

Cindy Slipko makes cookies at the home of her friend Sandra Lee in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. The two have been baking together every December 1st for 30 years. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Cindy Slipko makes cookies at the home of her friend Sandra Lee in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. The two have been baking together every December 1st for 30 years. Together with friends, they bake ... more

Neighbor Andrea Messick puts spinkles on a fresh batch of cookies at Sandra Lee's home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," have been baking together every December 1st for 30 years. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Neighbor Andrea Messick puts spinkles on a fresh batch of cookies at Sandra Lee's home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," ... more

Sandra Lee, right, shows neighbor Claire McCann, 10, how to makes cookies at her home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," have been baking together every December 1st for 30 years. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Sandra Lee, right, shows neighbor Claire McCann, 10, how to makes cookies at her home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," ... more

Sandra Lee makes cookies at her home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," have been baking together every December 1st for 30 years. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Sandra Lee makes cookies at her home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," have been baking together every December 1st for 30 ... more

Neighbor Carolyn McCann checks on a batch of cookies at Sandra Lee's home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," have been baking together every December 1st for 30 years. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Neighbor Carolyn McCann checks on a batch of cookies at Sandra Lee's home in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Sandra and her longtime freind Cindy Slipko, known as "The Cookie Ladies," have been ... more

Sandra Lee and Cindy Slipko - "The Cookie Ladies," two friends who have been baking together every December 1st, spent their 30th year together at Sandra's house to continue the tradition in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Sandra Lee and Cindy Slipko - "The Cookie Ladies," two friends who have been baking together every December 1st, spent their 30th year together at Sandra's house to continue the tradition in Easton, Conn. on ... more

Sandra Lee and Cindy Slipko - "The Cookie Ladies," two friends who have been baking together every December 1st, spent their 30th year together at Sandra's house to continue the tradition in Easton, Conn. on Saturday December 1, 2012. Together with friends, they bake over 7,000 cookies to give out to anyone who needs a special gift during the holidays, such as to the troops, local hospitals and orphanages to name a few. less

Sandra Lee and Cindy Slipko - "The Cookie Ladies," two friends who have been baking together every December 1st, spent their 30th year together at Sandra's house to continue the tradition in Easton, Conn. on ... more

EASTON -- A simple act of kindness in 1982 and the culinary "thank you" response that followed led to a lifelong friendship and a holiday baking tradition that has continued for 30 years and benefits those in need.

Sandra Lee, of Easton, and Cindy Slipko, of Long Island, N.Y., get together one day a year to bake homemade cookies for military veterans, hospitals, orphanages and less fortunate families and individuals. This year, victims of Superstorm Sandy will also receive a festive box or bag of Lee and Slipko's cookies.

Lee, a member of the Black Rock Congregational Church in Fairfield, said she will rely on church leaders to help her identify families affected by the October storm.

An assembly line of friends and family gathered in Lee's sizable kitchen Saturday to bake this year's batches, beginning at 6 a.m. "We will continue until about 2 a.m.," Lee said. Lee and Slipko wore matching red aprons with white lettering that read "Chef Sandy" and "Chef Cindy."

Throughout the day, friends stopped by to lend a hand. Neighbor Jeff Dumas stopped by to lend his taste buds. "I'm here to eat, not to work," he joked.

In the last three decades The Cookie Ladies, as they have become known, have used about a ton of butter, more than a ton of flour, 1,800 pounds of sugar, and countless dozens of eggs, ounces of vanilla, pounds of Belgian chocolate and jars of Smucker's red raspberry preserves to bake their Chocolate Crackle, Korova, Thumbprint, Russian Tea Cake, Shortbread, Linzer Tart and other cookies -- about 210,000 cookies and counting.

"We give them all away," Lee said. Some of them go to the people with whom they cross paths throughout the year -- teachers, mailmen, family and friends. But the bulk go to those in need, and most of their cookies go to people the women never get to meet.

"We don't have to know who they are. We just want to be able to give. Christmas is Christ's birthday ... It's our responsibility as humanitarians, as Americans, to follow the Golden Rule. It's always better to give than to receive," said Lee, whose mother, Lydia Brandon, taught her much about generosity.

"She used to say, `We don't have a lot of money, but we have a lot of love,' " Lee said.

Andrea Messick, of Trumbull, a friend of Lee's, said she was inspired by "Sandy's huge heart" to help bake cookies this year. While Slipko rolled out dough and cut cookies on the center island of Lee's kitchen Saturday, Messick melted chocolate on the stovetop. Lee, and other friends decorated cookies. Sandra's husband, Andrew Lee, did a variety of tasks including placing the tops on the Linzer Tarts.

"It's a lot of work, but I really enjoy the thought of giving them away. It's nice to see the result if what we've done," Justin said.

Claire's mom, Carolyn McCann, a pharmacist at Yale-New Haven Hospital, said she brings the Cookie Ladies' confections to the pediatric oncology unit of the hospital, and this year will give boxes of cookies to clergy at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport, asking them to distribute them to people in need.

The women don't ask for donations to support their effort. They spend their own money and they buy only natural ingredients. "You've got to use real butter and sugar. No artificial ingredients in this house," Lee said. "You have to do it the old fashioned way. If you put all this time and effort into making these cookies and you're giving them away they have to taste good," she said.

The recipes they use are from Slipko's mother-in-law, Mary Slipko, 97, who is responsible for bringing the two women together inadvertently. Lee worked for a physician on Long Island 30 years ago when Mary Slipko fell ill. Cindy Slipko called the doctor's office and Lee, the physician's assistant, answered the phone. Although the doctor was not the Slipkos' physician of record, Lee sent him to the emergency room where Mary Slipko had gone and he saw to her treatment.

As a "thank you," Cindy Slipko baked some cookies, using her mother-in-law's recipes, and sent them to Lee. They were so good that Lee asked Slipko to teach her how to make them.

"These are not slice and bake cookies ... We don't make chocolate chip cookies. They are New York-style, delicious cookies," Lee said.

"Families have traditions. Cindy is like family. This is our tradition," Lee said.